Division Perpetuated in 'Jumping the Broom'

Hello readers, and happy Monday! I am really angry today about a movie I rented on DVD over the weekend. I simply loved the movie and really enjoyed it, but was upset about one scene in it.

The movie was "Jumping the Broom." In the scene in question, an African American man hit on an African American woman. The woman was a stunning, dark-skinned sister, and during his rap he states, "I usually don't date dark-skinned women, but I am willing to make an exception." Wait a minute! What?!? Then to boot, at the end of the movie, a white woman asks him to dance and he looked to the heaven's and says, "Thank you." What in the world is going on here? If no one else recognizes that we have a serious problem in the African American community, I don't know what to do! We will never progress as a people if we continue to have the mentality that light is better. How can we have any argument with White America, if we don't love ourselves? I know this was just a movie, but we all know this happens in real life on a daily basis. For the writers to even feel comfortable putting the line in the movie speaks volumes. This is especially true because the star of the movie was a super light-skinned African American woman.

What are your thoughts?

Open Forum Wednesdays

What's on your mind today?

Open Forum Wednesdays

It's back! It's Open Forum Wednesday! Time to tell me what's on your mind. The only way we can unite and put an end to this issue once and for all is through communication...so let's get started today!

Open Forum Wednesdays

Yes, it's that time again! Tell me what's on your mind. How has this all-too-common issue impacted your life? Were you on both sides of the issue...a reformed color-struck person? What made you see the light?

Misconceptions Surrounding Slavery Perpetuated

I watched an interview of Terrence Howard on one of the late night programs, and he was talking about a house that he owns. The house apparently has a 300-ft. underground tunnel that leads into the woods, that slaves used as an escape route. He spoke about introducing the tunnel to his children, and she that he explained that it was the escape route for slaves. He asked them if they would like to possibly go in, and he stated, "They said, 'Why do we have to go in? We're light skinned. We can pass.'" He and the host laughed. 

I was thinking how inappropriate the comment was, because light-skinned people endured the hardships of slavery, just as the dark-skinned slaves did. It's this type of teaching that continues to encourage the ignorance in our community about the light-skinned, dark-skinned issue.

Open Forum Wednesdays

Tell me what's on your mind... What are your experiences? How has this issue impacted your life? Were you ever on the other end of the issue...being color struck yourself?

Black Hollywood

Do you think there are enough dark-skinned actresses portrayed in Hollywood? Stupid question, I know. But what can we do to change that? What can we really do?

Brown Paper Bag Rule

Back in the early 1900s, the first black sorority, Alpha Kappa Alpha Inc., had a rule that if a potential candidate was darker than a brown paper bag, she would not be considered for the sorority. About a year ago, I overheard a member of this sorority make a statement about another member. She stated, "She was surprised she was able to get in, being she was EXTREMELY dark." I was taken back, but made no comment because the girl who made the statement is a close friend of the family. I pose the question, does this underlying inside racism still exist in the world of sororities and fraternities?

The "N" Word, Revisited

I teach a business course and have two men in my class. I had my husband bring in some of our mouth-watering, homemade pizza to surprise my group. We had been having deep discussions about race (my entire class is African American), and the fact that I'm in an interracial marriage never came up. My husband delivered the pizza, and they saw him for the first time. 

Later, toward the end of class, one student asked if the word "nigger" ever came up in my house. I explained that I use the word almost every day, and that didn't seem to sit well with him. The student asked what I would do if my husband ever called me a nigger. I replied that it would definately cause some problems. The student then wanted to know why I used it if I didn't want him to. I explained that I use it as a term of endearment, and don't see it as a problem. The student seemed a little perturbed; but do I care? NO! 

Do you think the word "nigger" should be given so much power, or should it be a word that is freely used within our own race?